# Bulbs burning out **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 11, 2001, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bulbs-burning-out/49476 "2001-01-11T05:51:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![posatyvo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b5ac83/32.png) [@posatyvo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/posatyvo)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2001, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bulbs-burning-out/49476/21 "2001-01-11T23:17:20Z")
quote:Originally posted by posatyvo I believe the ground wire was not connected properly. jrishaw: Light bulbs have hot and neutral, is there even a ground? Mine seem to. There were three wires, one hot, one neutral and a little copper looking one that I just assumed was a ground/surge protection wire. I have been remodeling my house and all the lights I have fiddled with have had them. The only one that didn’t have one was the kitchen and that was my only problem light in the house. ---
**Author:** ![hibernicus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hibernicus/32/2802_2.png) [@hibernicus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hibernicus)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2001, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bulbs-burning-out/49476/22 "2001-01-11T23:43:16Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Crafter\_Man \* > \*\* > > So here’s my opinion so far, unless someone can convince me otherwise: loose connections, dirty connections, intermittent connections, etc. will not cause an incandescent bulb to burn-out early _unless the connection is part of the screw socket itself_. \*\* Let me try to convince you otherwise. In the case of the light I mentioned in my earlier post, I could _hear_ the arcing in the ceiling rose. On dismantling the fitting, I could _see_ the scorching on the plastic components. I could also _smell_ the acrid odour of melting plastic. Once I had replaced the wiring, the bulbs lasted more than a week, and I was satisfied I had correctly diagnosed and cured the problem. Convinced? ---
**Author:** ![Baraqiyal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@Baraqiyal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baraqiyal)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2001, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bulbs-burning-out/49476/23 "2001-01-11T23:51:22Z")
Thanks for the responses. To answer some of the earlier questions: I’m using normal 75 watt GE light bulbs. There is no noticeable vibration in the kitchen area. The bulb always burns when I flip the switch (never just by itself that I can recall). It’s probably not the socket itself because this fixture has two sockets and they both have the same problem. There is no flickering when it is working. The wiring I believe is circa 1925. There are no circuit breakers, just some giant fuses. But as I said, other light fixtures operate normally. I’ll study the suggestions and work on it this weekend, hopefully without hurting myself! ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2001, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bulbs-burning-out/49476/24 "2001-01-12T00:51:21Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Baraqiyal \* > \*\*Thanks for the responses. > > To answer some of the earlier questions: > > I’m using normal 75 watt GE light bulbs. > There is no noticeable vibration in the kitchen area. > The bulb always burns when I flip the switch (never just by itself that I can recall). > It’s probably not the socket itself because this fixture has two sockets and they both have the same problem. > There is no flickering when it is working. > The wiring I believe is circa 1925. There are no circuit breakers, just some giant fuses. But as I said, other light fixtures operate normally. > > I’ll study the suggestions and work on it this weekend, hopefully without hurting myself! > \*\* Do the bulbs always burn out together? If not, is there any correlation at all between the two (as far as _when_ they burn out)? Do they appear to be normal brightness for 75-watt bulbs? ---
**Author:** ![Baraqiyal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@Baraqiyal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baraqiyal)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2001, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bulbs-burning-out/49476/25 "2001-01-12T01:29:05Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Crafter\_Man \* > > Do the bulbs always burn out together? If not, is there any correlation at all between the two (as far as _when_ they burn out)? > > Do they appear to be normal brightness for 75-watt bulbs? > \*\* Unfortunately I can’t answer the first question. I don’t believe I’ve ever two bulbs burning in the same fixture at the same time. It always seemed like a waste to me since one bulb gives adequate light. All I can say is that both sockets burn out bulbs at approximately the same rate. They do appear to be normal brightness. ---
**Author:** ![tsunamisurfer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a698b9/32.png) [@tsunamisurfer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tsunamisurfer)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2001, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bulbs-burning-out/49476/26 "2001-01-12T04:35:44Z")
HEAT! After dozens of prematurely burned out bulbs in my basement, I discovered that the lighting fixture’s design traps too much heat and that excess heat dramatically reduces the lifespan of the bulb. Changed one of the fixtures. Presto! ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2001, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bulbs-burning-out/49476/27 "2001-01-12T04:50:30Z")
> [@](#): > > I could _hear_ the arcing in the ceiling rose. On dismantling the fitting, I could _see_ the scorching on the plastic components. I could also _smell_ the acrid odour of melting plastic.Once I had replaced the wiring, the bulbs lasted more than a week, and I was satisfied I had correctly diagnosed and cured the problem. Convinced? \*\* I believe you, but does anyone have an explanation of _why_ this would happen? If the bulb was visibly flickering, I can imagine that may cause the bulb to fail. If not, how can a short circuit (arcing) damage the bulb? ---
**Author:** ![cornflakes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@cornflakes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cornflakes)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2001, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bulbs-burning-out/49476/28 "2001-01-12T17:34:51Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Crafter\_Man \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > \*Originally posted by cornflakes \* > > \*\* > > > > The connections are thermally insulated from the rest of the outlet by the ceramic insulator that goes around the bulb, but the connectors are in direct contact with the soldered base of the bulb. The bulb is heated above its operating temperature, reducing its life. I don’t think the solder melts. it seems like the heat is just passed along to the filament. > > \*\* > > I agree that a bad wiring connection _directly on the socket_ could cause the base of the bulb to get too hot. But as far as any other connections go (wire-to-wire using wire nuts, at the switch, etc.), I fail to see how a bad connection will decrease a bulb’s life. If anything, a bad connection should _increase_ its life. \*\* Exactly. IIRC NEC lumps light sockets and cord sockets together as outlets; that’s why I used the term. This may have been a source of confusion. In any case, sorry if I wasn’t completely clear. ---
**Author:** ![Many\_Crows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/35a633/32.png) [@Many\_Crows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Many_Crows)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2001, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bulbs-burning-out/49476/29 "2001-01-22T15:43:50Z")
Baraqiyal Have you fixed your problem? Let us know what you found. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2001, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bulbs-burning-out/49476/30 "2001-01-22T16:19:52Z")
For starters: You can get a cheap voltage meter & check the voltage at the socket & let us know what it is. I too, have a really old house & the electric comp had to come out really fast once & reground it…as I was getting 124 volts in the kitchen. ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2001, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bulbs-burning-out/49476/31 "2001-01-22T21:51:38Z")
Perhaps the obvious is being overlooked here…perhaps you’ve got yourself a [Poltergeist](http://www.angelfire.com/ga/poltergeist/)😃 Cartooniverse ---
**Author:** ![Baraqiyal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@Baraqiyal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baraqiyal)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2001, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bulbs-burning-out/49476/32 "2001-01-23T00:25:23Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Many Crows \* > \*\*Baraqiyal > Have you fixed your problem? Let us know what you found. > \*\* Before doing anything too drastic, I decided to go with a lower wattage bulb. Many of the posters wrote that heat could be the problem, which reminded me that when I moved in, there was a 50 or 60 watt bulb in the fixture. I don’t think I started having problems until I started using 75 and 100 watt bulbs. This also makes sense because the fixture is completely enclosed, and therefore would probably get too hot. Anyway, I’m keeping my fingers crossed. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2001, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bulbs-burning-out/49476/33 "2001-01-23T01:09:21Z")
60 watts is usually the largest bulb rating for a ceiling fixture. I’ve seen a ceiling light that used a spot light. The light burnt out every week. Switching to a different bulb that allowed more air circulation past the bulb into the fixture cured the problem. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bulbs-burning-out/49476.md?page=1)